Population

Greenland´s population lives exclusively at the coast; in towns or settlements. More than half of the total population lives in the five largest towns Nuuk, Sisimiut, Ilulissat, Aasiaat and Qaqortoq. From the 1960´s on, the town populations have been growing rapidly, absorbing the net population growth as well as the migration from the settlements.

Greenland has a total populace overweight of men, as the workforce born outside of Greenland consists of 2/3 men and 1/3 women. Compared to the population size in Greenland, the internal migrations are significant, and have a big impact on the populace composition. The majority of migrants are citizens of the Danish Kingdom, who move from Denmark to Greenland or vice versa. Greenland´s constant need for summoned workforce requires the net emigration of foreign nationals to be continuously countered by immigration. Over time, the foreign net immigration is at a balance, but it’s not the case for the Greenlandic -born population segment.

Over 800 persons are born every year, and around 500 die. Men and women born in Greenland have a shorter life expectancy than the average of the western world. This is primarily due to a high mortality rate caused by accidents and suicide. The general birth pattern has remained stable during the last ten years. Women in settlements give birth to more children than those in towns. However, pregnancies more often result in legal abortions than in live births. Today, the total fertility is at a level of about 2.1 children per woman.